By William Qualkinbush.

Last season, with a throwback runner and a plethora of tight ends, the nondescript Boston College Eagles came out of nowhere and threw quite a scare into both Clemson and Florida State. Much of that team has dispersed, leaving the remaining parts to attempt to scrape together an encore performance.

A pretty solid 7-5 year greeted Steve Addazio in his inaugural effort at the helm of the BC program in 2013. Addazio came with a reputation for milking the most out of his offensive talent, and he certainly did that in year one with the Eagles. His infectious energy created a sense of belief that permeated the program and seemed to follow the team into every single game.

During Florida State’s national title run, only two teams scored more than 17 points against the Seminoles: Auburn (31) and Boston College (34). The shock value of that statistic is enhanced when considering the four-quarter dogfight the Eagles gave Clemson in its own building in mid-October last season before eventually falling by a score of 24-14.

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Addazio got his team to peak in its biggest games, and a lot of the credit for it goes to his quarterback. Now-departed senior Chase Rettig’s cool California demeanor provided the desired effect, calming the squad in moments of high intensity. New quarterback Tyler Murphy might not have the same power within the locker room, although he may be objectively more talented.

Murphy was recruited by Addazio to Florida when he was the offensive coordinator for Urban Meyer. He started six games for the Gators last season, going 2-4 overall and largely playing to the level of his competition. BC will want more than that from him if he is to replace Rettig, who completed 61.6 percent of his throws for 17 touchdowns and only eight interceptions.

Rettig’s absence will likely be a minor hiccup compared to the gaping hole left behind by tailback Andre Williams. The out-of-nowhere Heisman finalist rushed for more yards than all but a handful of backs in history last year, so the Eagles will need Herculean efforts from multiple places to pick up the slack. Returners combined for less than 18 percent of the total carries and yards the Eagles amassed last season, but the return of a stout interior line should provide some necessary leeway to the stable of tailbacks.

A similar gaping hole exists at wideout, where do-it-all possession phenom Alex Amidon bailed the Eagles out all year long in 2013. He gathered almost half of the team’s catches for more than half of its receiving yards a season ago. The players that remain were unused or unseen last season, so the passing game will remain a mystery.

Boston College will rarely lack quality linebackers, but this year might be a test of that theory. Gone are multi-year starters Steele Divitto and Kevin Pierre-Louis, who combined to make 220 tackles in 2013. Rising junior Steven Daniels is the leading tackler among returners, making 88 stops last season. He will be looked upon to lead a young group without much experience in the front seven.

Conventional wisdom suggests that BC will attempt to rotate a multitude of bodies into the game on the defensive line. A quick look at the stat sheet shows four returners with double digits in tackles without a clear-cut stud among them. The Eagles were not great rushing the passer last season, and 21.5 of the team’s 35 sacks from 2013 have now departed. This could be an issue given the Eagles’ struggles in coverage last season.

Speaking of coverage, there were some definite growing pains in the back four for Boston College last season. However, the return of all four starters for another crack at it in 2014 means there is hope for improvement. The unit was dead last in the ACC against the pass, an embarrassing marker that should not plague the team again with a full year of experience for all four starters under its belt.

The kicking game could be an adventure for Addazio, which is something he did not have to worry about in his first year at the helm at Boston College. Nate Freese is gone, and the team will replace him with junior Alex Howell. Freese did both the placekicking and punting, a rare feat Howell will now attempt to duplicate. Skeptics, stay tuned to see if this move works out in Addazio’s favor.

With so much upheaval, low expectations are understandable for Boston College this season. But after the scares the Eagles put into the division’s top two teams last season, counting them out would be a fool’s errand.